Secret Srories Archives - Secret Layers

The Story Of The Chinese Farmer And The Horse

This is a parable from ancient China that teaches us that things are neither good nor bad. They just are.

A farmer on a horse — An image illustration of the Chinese farmer’s eldest boy on a horse

A farmer in a rural Chinese village bought a horse and brought it home.
Early the next morning, as he was feeding the horse, it ran away. His neighbors felt sorry for him. They gathered around his farm and said, “We’re so sorry. How unlucky.”

The farmer calmly replied, “We’ll see.”

Just before sunset the next day, the horse returned with seven wild horses. The farmer and his family were very happy. The neighbors came back, smiling. “Oh, you’re so lucky! You now have eight horses. Your farm will grow quickly.”

The farmer replied, “We’ll see.”

Three days later, the farmer’s eldest son tried to ride one of the wild horses. He couldn’t control it, and the horse threw him over. The boy fell on the rocks and broke his leg. The neighbors said, “You’re so unlucky. The horses weren’t blessings at all. Poor boy. Poor family.”

The farmer simply said, “We’ll see.”

The following day, war broke out in the country. The king’s officers came to recruit young men for the army. The farmer’s son was rejected because of his injury. All the neighbors ran to him, saying, “Oh my God! Your son was spared. That’s so fortunate. How lucky!”

The farmer replied, “We’ll see.”

Life events are not inherently good or bad. They just happen. Many times, we try to assign meaning to them. We label events as good or bad. In reality, they don’t make sense in isolation.

Only after time passes, when you look at the bigger picture, does their meaning become clear.

Why Did I Write This Story On A Layer Poultry Farming Blog?

Things will happen in your life and on your farm. More than anything, you need a strong mind to get through these situations, whether they seem good or bad.

You’ll have good seasons, high production, and strong prices. Other times, you may face disease outbreaks, feed price hikes, personal emergencies, or very poor production.

That doesn’t mean you try to assign meaning to each situation. Instead, focus on solving the problem at hand or enjoying the success at hand.

That’s all that matters.

To learn more about resilience in farming, you need to know about DR.STARR a successful layer poultry farmer.

Get this Free Layer Poultry Farming Guide to learn how to start and run your layer poultry farm profitably.

Free beginners guide to starting a profitable layer poultry farm. Step by step guide.

See you next Friday!

carlosdeche4040@gmail.com

secretlayerske@gmail.com

January 23, 2026

The Farmer And The Goose That Laid Golden Eggs

This is an old story about a poor farmer.

One morning, as he went to check on his goose, he noticed something unusual sitting in the nest — a bright, heavy, golden egg.
At first, he doubted it. He thought it was some trick. He almost tossed it aside.
But something held him back.
He took it for evaluation, and to his shock, the egg was pure gold.

The goose that laid golden eggs. — The farmer and the goose that laid golden eggs.

The next morning, the same thing happened.
And the next.
Day after day, the goose produced a golden egg.
Slowly, the farmer’s life changed. His poverty faded. His confidence grew. His small farm started to feel like a miracle.

But as his wealth increased, so did his impatience.
He grew tired of waiting for one egg each day.
He wanted all the gold immediately.
So he made a dangerous decision: he slaughtered the goose, hoping to find a pile of golden eggs inside.

When he opened it, the truth hit him.
There were no golden eggs inside.
And there was no goose anymore.
He had destroyed the very source of his success.

In Stephen Covey’s book : The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, this is what he says…

Within this parable is a natural law — the real definition of effectiveness. (Which in the farmers context I’ll say profitability)

Many farmers think profitability means producing more. More output. More results. More action.

But the story shows a deeper truth: profitability is always a balance between what you produce (the eggs) and the capacity or asset that produces it (the goose).

If you chase results and ignore the source, you lose everything.

If you only protect the source and forget the goal, you will starve.

True success comes from managing both — production and production capacity — at the same time.

Let me know in the comments how you are managing production and production capacity on your farm.

See you next Friday!

carlosdeche4040@gmail.com

secretlayerske@gmail.com

December 12, 2025

Ask A Broiler Farmer, Then Ask A Layer Farmer

Some lessons hit you in ways you never forget—this one came from chickens.

When I was growing up, I spent a lot of time around poultry farms. One morning, my dad decided to take us to see how different types of chicken farms operate.

We arrived at the broiler farm just as the sun was rising. The air was thick with the smell of feed and the soft hum of ventilation fans. Workers moved quickly, carrying the chickens from their pens toward the processing area. The birds scattered and squawked, jostling against one another. You could almost feel their fear—they knew what was coming. My dad led us aside before we saw anything more, but the lesson was already clear: these birds were being raised for a single, final payoff. Everything on the farm was geared toward one moment—the sale.

A few days later, my dad took us to a layer farm. The difference hit me immediately. The hens moved calmly, pecking at the feed, scratching the ground, and laying eggs day after day. The barn was quieter, the atmosphere almost peaceful. The farmer collected the eggs as they came, creating a steady, predictable flow of income. Unlike the broiler farm, success here didn’t depend on selling the birds—it depended on the output they produced consistently.

Many layer chicken kept for eggs in a big poultry house. — Layer Chicken in a poultry house.

My dad stopped and looked at me. “See the difference?” he asked. Both farms own valuable assets—the chickens—but they treat them in completely different ways.

The broiler farmer is like an investor chasing capital gains: the money comes only at the end, when the asset is sold.

The layer farmer is like an investor chasing cash flow: the asset produces money day after day, steadily and reliably.

Most people invest like broiler farmers—they wait for a single big payout and call it risky. The wiser approach is to think like the layer farmer and be the layer farmer: focus on cash flow, let your assets work for you every day, and build wealth steadily.

The secret isn’t in waiting for the sale—it’s in learning to milk what you already have.

This is a fictional story inspired by the story of the cattle rancher and dairy farmer in Robert Kiyosaki’s book : Who Took My Money? Why Slow Investors Lose And Fast Money Wins.

See you next Friday!

carlosdeche4040@gmail.com

secretlayerske@gmail.com

December 5, 2025

The Story Of The 3 Bricklayers- Finding Purpose On Your Layer Chicken Farm

(St.Paul’s Cathedral,London)

After the great fire of 1666 that destroyed London, the world’s famous architect, Christopher Wren, was asked to rebuild St Paul’s Cathedral.
‎
‎One day in 1671, he observed three bricklayers at the project site.

‎To the first bricklayer, who was bent over Christopher asked,

‎“What are you doing?”

‎He replied,

“I’m a bricklayer. I’m working hard laying bricks to feed my family.”

This bricklayer looked tired and was way behind in his work.
‎
‎The second bricklayer,who was half standing responded,

“I’m a builder. I’m building a wall.This wall will be a foundation for this building and will protect everyone who will be inside ”
‎
‎ But…

The third brick layer, who was standing tall when asked “What are you doing?”replied with a smile and said

“I’m a cathedral builder. I’m building a great cathedral to The Almighty.

Where people can gather together,pray and celebrate the LORD.

He was the most productive of the three.

What has this got to do with Layers Farming?

3 Lessons
‎1. Big Picture Thinking
‎ Have the ability to see the end result of what you are doing and how your work contributes to it.

Look beyond the daily chores.

Instead of just feeding hens and collecting eggs, envision how your layers farm helps solve the chronic problem of malnutrition in Africa—from families and school children to local restaurants.
‎
‎2.Attitude
‎Having a positive attitude and pride in what you’re doing will show up in your work and your motivation.
‎
‎That belief and pride in your layers chicken farm will definitely show in how you handle your suppliers,customers and even chicken!

This will provide more motivation to keep you in the game long enough to be successful.
‎
‎3.The power of purpose
‎The cathedral builder shows a personal expression of purpose that gives higher meaning to his work.

You’re not just selling eggs—you’re feeding families, empowering small-scale farmers, and improving food systems.

‎At Secret Layers our purpose is not to give you information about layers poultry farming – it’s about fulfilling dreams.

Your dreams.

‎This is what our Mission reads..

To help you go from layer poultry dream to a money-making layer farm.

‎And by doing that we are contributing to you, our readers mission.

‎That’s the kind of mission I want you to have on your layers farm.

TIP
Use our 3-Why Exercise—three simple questions—to uncover your real purpose before you begin your farm.

3 Why Exercise – Discovering My Why Download

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